Biomarkers of Angiogenesis and their Role in Patient Selection for Antiangiogenic Therapy

A new era of precision medicine is mandating that drug discovery and development in the field of oncology proceed in parallel with biomarker discovery that will allow patient populations to be stratified for response. This is of particular importance in the field of anti-angiogenic drug development. New therapeutic targets are being explored, and each new target will require a more complete understanding of the biology in order for predictive biomarkers to be identified, and validated, leading to more efficient clinical trials. This article reviews the current state of the art regarding potential biomarkers for anti-angiogenic therapy, including such biomarkers as hypertension, imaging parameters that measure blood flow in a tumor, as well as circulating growth factors and circulating endothelial cells. The limitations of these current biomarkers within the larger context of tumor vasculature heterogeneity are discussed.